Caught in Clerkenwell

0:00So it's the middle of Clark and Wild Design Week and we have launched an unboxing experience tapping into designers' emotional states. So we've launched six characters that designers feel in the day. So the creative block, the distracted, the overthinker, super common. Excited, we all go there. Night owl. And then this last zen, which is really rare. There's only nine out of 300 characters. and I'm going to talk to people, find out which one they feel like they're most and how they overcome that. So let's go. Three years after we've started this podcast, we thought it was time to make sure that those lessons and the takeaways from our amazing guests were actually actionable, something you can really put into place.

0:46So we have launched show notes, a bi-weekly email, get into your inbox, and that will give you the key headlines that is indexable, findable, actionable we can really start to make a difference in creating healthy happy workspaces so the link's below or you can head to stansons.co.uk forward slash space look forward to seeing you sign up right so we've got a podcast that's trending 11 in the uk and 12 in usa strangely and yeah but i want to ask you a quick question carolina what character do you most resemble oh i feel like I can identify myself with all of them but I think I tend to be the overthinker.

1:29So many creatives are. How do you handle it? How do you like get over it? Good question. I think talking through sorts with other people helps a lot to me just to sort it out internally yourself and then like reminding yourself also that nobody's dying. Like it doesn't matter if you choose green or beige nobody's gonna die. Amazing love that and last question is what What are you hoping to get from Clark Amar Design Week? I'm curious to see lots of innovative materials, sustainable materials. Yeah, anything that sparks joy, I guess. Amazing. Thank you. Right. So which character did you get today?

2:03I got the distracted one. Is that you? It's definitely me. Yeah. How do you handle getting distracted? Sometimes I have to have a little walk around the block or have like a snack. I've got ADHD, so I've got to keep it fresh. Love it. Haven't loads of designers got that? and you got it got night out is that you yes actually completely me because i always like working not not workaholic like that but i found that working at night time actually suits me better in terms of like i stay up there and then i could focus on what i'm doing so it's kind of another way around of working and what do you do in the mornings well sleep wicked and what are you hoping to get from clark and well design week it's nice just to like reconnect with old contacts and sort of see what new bits and bobs are on the in the industry and yeah it's just it's just a nice relax well not relax but like a nice way to like connect with other people and enjoy enjoy it a little bit yes one of the fun things about the job isn't it yeah 100 % and you well it's good to always come to see friends and also all the new products and you know it's good quite like a yearly catch up with everything in terms of creativity also it's just good to like go see around really that I really we love just walking around and you know be a bit spontaneous like see what we likes and something like that to just get some inspiration yeah wicked thank you so which character do you relate to most I think I relate to excited the most I'm just a very bubbly person and I like his little denim jacket a little denim on denim moment but I also like the distracted because that's a bit of me as well one minute I'm doing this then I'm doing that and just jumping between everything so and how do you handle being distracted like in an office just sometimes you just gotta lock in put your headphones in hunker down but we have a pretty good team we're all like respectful of each other's space if you can see someone's focusing you kind of just leave them alone and let them do what they need to do but sometimes I still get like really easily distracted anyway all creatives do don't worry and what are you hoping to get from Clarkmore Design Week honestly just hoping to get some obviously some more inspiration see what's new and happening out there socialize it's been a really busy start to the year for the team so i think it'll be good for us to just get out and let loose a little bit and have some fun yeah wicked thank you thank you so much which character are you which character are you out of these yeah that you relate to most oh i think probably either distracted or overthinker okay i think most design creatives are right yeah but yeah i'm definitely distracted.

4:36I get a million ideas and then I've kind of, oh, this one, this one, this one. And how do you handle being an overthinker? Oh, I don't know. Probably buying silly things like this. So this is a great outlet for that here. Yeah, wicked. And how do you handle distractions in the office? Oh God. Well, even working from home, I still am getting calls left, right and centre. I think kind of leaning on my other teammates and asking them for help and kind of channeling that energy rather than feeling distracted by my own brains the way forward. Amazing, amazing. And what are you wanting to get from Clark and Wild Design Week?

5:09I think great moments like this, great moments with clients and people we've worked with before. It's fantastic. Cool. Inspiration, really, and just seeing the new products and how they'll fit into our current design projects. Amazing. Thank you for stopping by. Thank you. Can I ask you a quick question? Which character do you identify most with? I would probably say maybe the overthinker. I feel like that's definitely me when I've got a design problem that I'm sorting through. But yeah, the little cloud always lifts and it always goes. But that I identify with massively. So many creators say that.

5:43Like, obviously, how do you handle that and not letting it bog you down? I think it's just take a deep breath and carry on. Like, you know, you're always going to get to the answer eventually. So, yeah. Amazing. And what's one thing you're hoping to find walking around Clark and Wild this week? I think probably new products and speaking to people that haven't seen in a little while, which is always great. What do you like to see in a new product? Colour and form, like shape and stuff. Something a bit interesting, something that people don't care. Love it. Perfect. Thank you so much. Can I ask you a question?

6:15Yes, of course. Bonjour. Bonjour. Which character do you identify most with? I think for me, it's the excited idea. I've got a lot of ideas millions of plans in my head sticking to one is really hard and I've got a lot of things I would like to do in life so I would have said probably an exciting idea but I'm not double denim though you're not double denim so the only thing you're not is creative block no I am creative block as well okay yeah I'm going to be a mixture of a few of them and how do you get out of a creative block if you're ever in it well depends a nice walk is usually the good way for me to reset and find my way to get back into focus so that's probably my best way And what do you want to find in Clark Mile Design Week?

6:56Inspiration, wow moments, and just feeling like it's such a good time to be alive. Amazing. And what does that look like for you? Connection with people is a big one. Some people I know, new connections. Food is a big part of my life. So anything around food. I've just been to a very exciting breakfast experience and that made my day already. Perfect. Thank you. So which character do you feel like you're most like? I feel like I'm a little bit of everyone, but I feel like today I am definitely Creative Block. So I feel she's my spirit animal today. Wicked. And when you've got Creative Block, how do you break out of it?

7:32I'm one of those people that I need to take regular breaks. So I feel like if that's just going for a quick walk or grabbing a coffee or starting something different and then coming back to it at a later date and then I sort of feel refreshed. Amazing. And what are you wanting to get out of Clark & Wild Design Week? I've been to quite a few like a more design weeks but I feel like every year you get to see all the new stuff which is exciting and get to meet up with colleagues old and new and suppliers and it's just a good time to like chat and yeah get inspired amazing and what products would you just like love to see something different what would you love I I'm still in the flooring market I'm still after non-glue down funky flooring because I feel like for D &B everything like fun like gable parquet it's always glue down so I'm after accessible funky flooring flooring companies listen up make a change we want funky not glue down flooring thank you so boring wicked thank you can I ask you a quick question yes which character did you get today I got the distracted character is that you definitely me definitely very easily distracted by everything could anything amazing I think loads of creatives are right yes definitely I think being a creative your attention gets kind of drawn all over the place so I think it fits yeah definitely fits the job description doesn't it totally and how do you handle distractions if you need to focus I definitely need a bit of background noise um I can't if it's silence I'm more distracted it's almost like I'm seeking that so having a little bit of background noise means I can really focus And if it's something in the job where I can really get my brain engaged and stuff, that really helps as well.

9:16Amazing. And what are you hoping to get from Clark and Wild Design Week? What would you love to find? Inspiration. That's all. Get excited about things. Yeah, quick and easy. Wicked. Thank you so much. Can I ask you all a quick question? Go for it. Wicked. Which character do you relate to the most? I think I'm overthinker, which I'm not. I don't feel good about admitting, but when I look at them all, that's definitely me. I think every creative feels that way, for sure. Definitely distracted. Oh, perfect. I think it's a mix we can do with thinker and a nail. Yeah. Have you got a night owl in you?

9:52Yeah, I do. So how do you get on in the mornings? What do you do? I'm actually quite, I think I'm a little bit both nail and an early bird. I know it's all bad, but yeah, I quite like doing my tasks quite early in the morning. But I also think I'm quite creative at night as well. Perfect. And how do you handle distractions in the workplace? I think I'm just like a jumper. So I'll do one thing and then jump onto another, then come back. I think I'm just all over the place, but it works for me. And it works for you. Yeah, that's it. And being an other thing, I think so many creatives are. So how do you get that out of your head to not self-doubt?

10:27Gosh, I think talking to my team and like other designers, we're actually really collaborative at Claremont. So we just chat. And I think when I'm overthinking and getting a rut, as soon as I speak to anyone else, you're like, it's fine. Like, yeah, it's not that deep. We get through it. Yeah. Wicked. That's great. And what do you want to, what would be the perfect thing you would find at Carcowell Design Week? Inspiration. Yeah. New ideas. Yeah. What would be a cool new idea to find? I think seeing what people are doing with sustainability at the minute is like really interesting seeing how they're reclaiming and reusing new things so yeah yeah I agree I think that we're really into that at the moment and trying to find like things that we've not thought about yeah so yeah inspiration hopefully yeah amazing calling out more sustainability please thank you which character do you identify the most as I identify the most with the overthinker I think every single designer automatically becomes an overthinker it's kind of natural thing yeah 100 % agree and what do you do to like stop yourself spinning down into a negative cycle of overthinking that's a very good question I think if I'm being honest for me it's usually my colleagues so it's kind of I hit the wall at some point where I hit the wall of the pre-con or technical designers where they kind of just stop my overthinking and they're like live come back to earth we need to do it this way and then I'm like cool okay so they're kind of this rational thought behind everything this rational brain and usually they kind of stop me from overthinking so yeah I think like you know once my creative juices are flowing then you just kind of you keep overthinking overthinking and then you just need certain people especially in your team your colleagues to just kind of stop you and be like cool that's it that's enough we're doing this wicked such a great answer what would you love to see in Carcumile this year I want to see lots of color i know it's a very vague answer but i just want to go and see lots of color out there and furniture all the finishes materials all the installations i just want to see color because i feel like right now especially in when it comes to interiors colors colors are coming back in all the vibrant colors and i'm really excited to just see that and what color do you want to see electric blue because it's my favorite amazing thank you olivia so which character do you like identify most with?

12:43Overthinker. Overthinker? Yeah. Distracted. When someone greeted me like happy Tuesday and then I believed it's Tuesday. I believed it's Tuesday. And then I was like is it really Tuesday today? You're just gullible that's different. And when you're overthinking how do you like stop it going into a negative spiral? I mean it doesn't have to be a negative spiral to be fair it can also be a positive one you just think too much like you just think too much about what other people think and what what something means and other stuff but you don't stop to be fair you never stop most artists it's kind of a spring okay yes we curse it never just it just never ends you know the thinking never ends it's like with a project no you never stop thinking about the project even two years after it's finished you're like oh maybe i should have done that so like and then after that you get distracted and how do you manage distractions in an office no it's because it's i'm either the distraction or being distracted.

13:40So I like the saying, I'm noisy. Yeah, I am the distraction probably. I think they should do like a subcategory of like distracted and distraction. Yeah, I'm distracted. And what do you want to find in Clerkenwell? What would be the perfect product to find? I don't think there's a perfect product. It's just, you just go around and see what's new, what you could use maybe. It also depends if you have a project, a light project at the moment, if it's just, if you're just going around for inspiration. I think like for me at the moment, it's just inspiration. So I think it's just amazing to see everything and what people are doing in the design industry.

14:13It's cool. What are you hoping to find out there? Yeah, mine is something more like this, in terms of acoustic and sustainable products. Because I think these are the things that you only get to understand more when you are closer to the products. Thank you so much. It's great. Which character do you feel most like? I like more the excited one, but I think in reality I'm the overthinking. I'm an excited overthinker. I think you should combine two of them to make a real character. It's like one quality cannot characterize us, I think. How do you manage to compress all your ideas down into one on a project?

14:51As a team decision at the end. I present all my ideas and at the end we narrow it down according to what the team is able to do. Great. And have you been around Clark and Well? Yeah? Or are you still to get around? Yes, since yesterday. Yeah, it's quite exciting. but today I think is the big day with all the parties at the end we will see more things. What would you really love to find in Clerkenwell this year? An exciting workshop. Also I'm really looking forward to the puppy yoga to try and experience. Usually experiences are successful together with exploring the materials. Yes, I think that's the most exciting.

15:31Amazing, thank you so much. Cheers. is i find it simply fascinating how physical space can totally change how we think feel and behave meaning it can pause distractions it can connect us it can mean we do our very best work and that's where stansons steps in this show is created by stansons who design make and install curtains and acoustics to create the perfect environment for people to flourish and do their very best work. You've got a project on, we know how it feels. Reach out and we'll start to talk.